ANCOR – American Network of Community Options and Resources

Foothold Technology is a proud partner of the American Network of Community Options and Resources – the national trade association representing over 1,000 private providers of community living and employment supports and services to more than 600,000 individuals with disabilities.

ANCOR provides organizational, professional, and leadership development and networking opportunities and services. In addition, ANCOR encourages providers to be effective stewards of their funds, employing leading practices in procurement and taking advantage of opportunities for savings from vendor partners.

Preparing for the Future: A Conversation with Industry Leaders

Esme Grewal, VP of Government Relations at ANCOR, joined us for a panel discussion with leaders from across the human services sector. Watch below to hear her thoughts on the current issues affecting I/DD service providers such as the increased focus on technology, the status of Electronic Visit Verification legislation, workforce management and much more.

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Webinar | The Power of Partnership: Collaboration Goes a Long Way

About The Webinar

Managing change can be stressful and difficult. Careful planning, collaboration, and combined vision can help make it a positive experience. This is the story of a group of 18 New Jersey agencies who banded together to create a cross-agency collaborative to tackle the shift to a Fee-For-Service model in their state.

What You’ll Learn

Based on lessons learned and a shared experience, presenters share practical and sometimes funny tips on how the transition provided agencies with an opportunity to evaluate operations and improve collaboration among fellow service providers.

Presenters outline how they assembled the team, challenges they faced along the way, how partnership led to better procedures, and how the collaborative created a unified voice to advocate with state partners, and work with its technology partner to improve service delivery. Viewers come away with a roadmap for implementing stronger collaborations.

Presenters

Michele Meyer, Director of QA & Compliance, Jewish Service for the Developmentally Disabled – New Jersey

Webinar | Advocating for an Inclusive Workforce: A Round-table About Supported Employment

About The Webinar

Advocating for an inclusive workforce can help foster relationships and bring individuals towards greater independence. Whether you are helping individuals develop the skills they need to be able to work in an ice cream shop, supermarket or out in the community, learning from each other can help strengthen your agency.

What You’ll Learn

Listen to industry experts from American Network of Community Options Resources (ANCOR), Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities (IARF), NY Alliance and Foothold Technology, and their conversation on the state of supported employment, best practices and how agencies can support one another.

Presenters

Esme Grant Grewal, Vice President of Government Relations, ANCOR

Sarah Myerscough-Mueller, Vice President at IARF

Pat Dowse, Vice President, NY Alliance

David Bucciferro, Senior Advisor, Foothold Technology

ANCOR Conference: Convergence and Collaboration in New Orleans

by Rachel Miller, Senior Project Manager, Foothold Technology

My favorite part of working as a Senior Project Manager on the Client Services Team is spending time with customers in person. While the countless hours we spend meeting over the phone allow us to do our jobs effectively – sometimes that in-person connection adds an extra boost to the partnership. Last week, I had the pleasure of spending some real quality time with two of our customers – The Arc of Bergen and Passaic, and Jewish Service for the Developmentally Disabled – as we presented together at the ANCOR Conference in New Orleans. And quite appropriately, our session was about collaboration.

Over the past four years, I have worked closely with our contingent of 20+ New Jersey I/DD customers as they have made the state-mandated switch to Medicaid billing and electronic health records. It has not been an easy journey for them. Fortunately, with some support from Foothold to get things off the ground, this group of providers has banded together and formed a cross-agency committee that works collaboratively to navigate the murky and challenging waters of the Medicaid transition.

During our session at the ANCOR conference, Michele Meyer from JSDD spoke about how the group formed, how they pool resources and knowledge so none of them have to reinvent the wheel, and how they use each other as a resource when they have questions or encounter barriers. Alice Siegel of The Arc of Bergen and Passaic spoke about how the group has leveraged their power in numbers to push the state for needed regulatory changes and clarifications, as well as to push us here at Foothold to work collaboratively with them to enhance AWARDS so that it more fully meets their needs. I shared how this committee is a wonderful resource for me, as I know there is always someone I can refer a customer to for assistance who has been through it already. And more often than not, they already know each other and are all willing to provide a helping hand.

While we weren’t working, Alice, Michele, and I made sure to take advantage of the fabulous location of the ANCOR Conference! While browsing in shops and art galleries in the French Quarter, we got to know each other a bit more as people and not just as customers and vendor. While enjoying warm beignets and sipping delicious coffee at Café Du Monde, we shared stories about our work – helping each other to better understand our daily work lives, which I know will only enhance how we work together moving forward. I left New Orleans feeling energized for ongoing collaboration with this amazing group of providers, and thankful for the opportunity to present with them and get to know them a bit better.